


What’s Done Is Done

by 0nwards



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Background Boil/Waxer - Freeform, Cannon Divergence, Established Relationship, Fix It, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post Order 66, The prequels wrecked me and the clones deserve nice things
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 07:27:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23847424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/0nwards/pseuds/0nwards
Summary: After years of terror and destruction, Cody wakes up.
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Comments: 73
Kudos: 410





	1. Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, I can’t believe this fic is ready to start sharing. It has been a labor of love and the result of re-watching Clone Wars while knowing that no one you care about gets a happy ending.
> 
> Obi-Wan deserved better. The clones deserved better. Everyone deserved better.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> *** TW: brief mention of suicidal thoughts ***

_ Cody watched as Obi-Wan scaled the rock face on that damned lizard and he could swear he could see the smirk on his general’s face even from here.The man liked to pretend that he was more stoic than his former padwan, but every clone in the GAR knew where Anakin got his flair for the dramatic. _

_ “The general sure knows how to make an entrance.”A shiny, Parse, Cody was pretty sure his name was, said, and Cody let out an undignified snort. _

_ “That he does.” Cody muttered under his breath. The unease that nestled deep within Cody’s stomach was vastly overpowered by the feeling of wild, irrational, hope. He wouldn’t be fully settled until his general was back by his side, but the thought that, with Grevious dead and the end of the war was in sight... _

_ Cody had never allowed himself to think about what he would do after. He was a soldier, and a damn good one, but he knew the realities of war. There was always the very real possibility that he would join his fallen brothers, marching ahead to worlds unknown. He knew it was a reckless, dangerous, line of thought, but now his heart was full of something almost inconceivable. _

_ Hope. _

_ Hope that he would live to see the end of this force forsaken war. Hope that he and Obi-Wan could... _

_ A sharp buzz pulled Cody from his thoughts and he frowned as he looked down at his com. The message was from an unknown sender, but it was on one of the secure lines and marked as high priority. _

_ Cody stared. Who would be calling his direct line now of all times?He didn’t have the chance to find out.  _

_ Without even accepting the call, a hooded figure, almost shrunken looking, sprang to life from the holo projector. “Commander Cody, it is time. Execute Order 66.” The strangely familiar voice drawled before flickering away. _

_ A thought immediately flashed, neon like the colors of a poisonous animal, in Cody’s head. Kill the Jedi traitors. _

_ Cody’s heart was beating a mile a minute. That didn’t make sense. When he collected his general and got back to the Negotiator... _

_ Good soldiers follow orders.  _

_ Cody’s hand reached for his com. He must tell his troops, they must execute the traitor. _

_ No! Cody withdrew his hand like it had been burned. Obi-Wan was no traitor. He had fought with them, bled with them, and very nearly died with them over and over again. He wasn’t Krell. There was no one that Cody trusted more. _

_ Pain exploded white-hot from Cody’s temple and he felt like his head was going to burst. _

_ Good soldiers follow orders. _

_ His hand moved back of its own accord, activating the com. Cody was screaming inside his head as absolute panic overwhelmed his mind. _

_What was this? Why was he not in control of his own body?_

_Good soldiers follow orders._

_The words came out of Cody’s mouth, unbidden, unwanted, but he couldn’t stop them._

_Good soldiers follow orders._

_ Cody climbed into one of the seized separatist turrets, staring at the controls he had seen many times before like they were something foreign. _

_ Good soldiers follow orders. _

_ He leveled the turret, the gen... traitor in his sights. He couldn’t stop, no matter how much his mind screamed that this was wrong, wrong, wrong. _

_ His hand slipped, just slightly, and if the cannon was aimed just a little too low, well... _

_ Good soldiers follow orders. _

_ I’m sorry  cyar'ika.  I’m sorry. _

_ Good soldiers follow orders. _

_ GOOD SOLDIERS FOLLOW ORDERS. _

_ EXECUTE THE TRAITOR. _

— 

Cody sat straight up, cold sweat soaking through his blacks.

One second he was drowning, the world a muddled grey, and the next he was pulled out of the water and into the light. He sat bolt upright as wave after wave of pain-sickness-anger roiled through him and he turned to empty the contents of his stomach into the offered waste basket. 

Every fiber of his being was screaming at him that this had to be fake, that this had to be a bad dream, but he knew better.

He had killed his general, he had betrayed his jedi, the man who had, against all odds, welcomed Cody into his heart and bed.

Tendrils of panic began to prod at the corners of Cody’s mind, but he clamped it down. He could panic later, in the solitude of his quarters, but now...

It felt surreal. His body had moved but he had no control. It was as if he had been locked away in his own mind, reduced to nothing more than a flesh-droid. Capable of following orders, but doing little else.

Cody blinked as the world grew into focus around him. He was in a med bay, the med bay of the Avenger, it looked like, and his head felt like it was splitting open in a that had nothing to do with the memories rushing through him.

Fighting through the pain, Cody made to sit up but the human medic, Oran, pressed a firm hand on his shoulder. “Sir, you have a concussion. You need to rest.”

Cody’s memory was hazy. He had just touched down on the planet below and had exited his ship to meet his squad when...

Nothing.

“You were caught on the outskirts of a blast.”Oran said shortly.“You’re lucky that you only have a concussion. Now rest, you are not cleared for duty.” He wrote something down on the clipboard and, apparently satisfied that Cody wouldn’t try to sneak off, injected something into Cody’s IV bag and walked away.

The icy feeling, familiar from days upon days in medical, crept through Cody’s veins and soon he felt the world once again descend into black.

—

The first weeks after his  awakening , Cody felt like he was sleep walking. The mind numbing guilt tugged at him at every turn and consumed every waking moment.

It was his training that saved him, in the end. In battle, a soldier that dwelled on mistakes was as good as dead. A half second of guilt was allowed, but you had to keep moving. Your life and the life of your squad could depend on it.

Cody had to keep going, he had to keep fighting. If he let himself consider the full extent of what he had done...

Cody would be righting his wrongs until his last breath and he was afraid that even that wouldn’t be enough to repay all of the atrocities he was responsible for. His jetti was dead, his vod were scattered to the four corners of the galaxy, and Cody has done nothing to stop it. Worse still, he had been complicit.

The muzzle of his blaster had begun to look more and more appealing every day. Why should he, Cody, the man who had betrayed everything he had ever cared about, get to live, but so many other good men died? His general would have said it was the will of the force, but Cody wasn’t so sure.

He had shot down Obi-Wan, he had helped lead the charge as his new masters spread the very terror that Cody had been created to fight throughout the galaxy. Palapitine ruled with an iron fist. Cody had heard tales of entire battalions wiped out for a single act of disobedience.

Much to Cody’s relief, he had never seen the emperor himself.It was hard enough to regulate his mind and try to seem like little more than a mindless drone the first time he saw the emperor’s little minion striding through the halls of the ship, he didn’t think that he would be able to fool the emperor himself.

While Cody was not force sensitive in the slightest, the rudimentary mental shields his jedi has spent long hours helping him cultivate must have been good enough, because Lady Parus never looked his way.

The identity of the masked sith was a mystery, but not one that Cody was keen to solve. Cody needed to keep is head down if he had any hope of survival.Being different, now more than ever, was practically a death sentence.

He was surprised that none of the officers noticed a change. Well, maybe surprised wasn’t the right word. Natural borns had always been dismissive of clones, but the Empire took this to a new level. Cody managed to get by in his haze of guilt and misery without anyone being any the wiser.

His pain meant nothing. He had caused so much pain, so much suffering, so much death, nothing he could do would ever repay the terror he had caused, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t try. If nothing else, Cody would spend every last second of his lifetime trying to right some of the wrongs that he had been a part of.

If there was one thing that Cody was sure of, it was that the Empire must fall.

—

Cody still had no idea what had caused him to suddenly wake up, and that terrified him more than anything. He didn’t know what had turned him and his brothers into flesh droids and he had no idea if he would suddenly revert back.

He wished that he did so that he could help free his fellow brothers, maybe find an ally in this krif forsaken wasteland, but for now, Cody was alone.

Once Cody had truly processed what was going on, he had to decide his next course of action. He could go down in a blaze of glory, taking as many imperials down with him as he could, or...

Or he could contact the rebels.

The second option was more dangerous. Rebels existed but, from what intel Cody got from the imperials, their numbers were small and their forces were scattered. Even if Cody could get in contact with them, even if he could somehow convince them to trust him, he wasn’t sure how much his intel could help. There was also that nagging doubt, that lingering fear of unwillingly turning on his allies, made Cody hesitant to seek out the rebellion, at least at this stage.

There were no good options. All Cody could do was keep his head down and gather as much intel as he could. Maybe one day he could find something important enough to risk it all and contact the rebels.

Cody was surprised that he still held the rank of Commander.There were still a few clones in service among the main imperial fleet, but they, like Cody, had all been higher ranking officers under the Republic, tacticians regarded as brilliant even among the natural-borns. The rest of the clones had been disbursed, companies broken apart and vod sent to the far corners of the galaxy.

He had noticed that the missions his remaining brothers were sent on were often in the outer rim and always the most dangerous, always had the highest casualty rates. Someone, and Cody had his suspicions who, wanted the clones gone and they weren’t bothering to be subtle about it.It wasn’t as if there was anyone left to care about that sort of thing.

While a surprise, it was a good thing that Cody continued to go unnoticed, unchallenged. To the Imperials, he was nothing more than an unusually intelligent droid. His military success may have meant that they weren’t as likely to throw him to the side as his brothers, but Cody still took every opportunity to memorize more information. From patrol patterns to access codes, to which members of the admiralty were currently feuding, he committed anything and everything that could possibly be of use to the rebellion to memory.

Part of that meant volunteering for the extra shifts, the ones where tired soldiers often had loose tongues.

There were rumors, rumors that Cody didn’t want to hear. Rumors that clones were being taken and decommissioned, that they were too volitile for the battle field.There were stories, more and more every day, of clones coming back from a battle, only to shoot themselves or their brothers in the head.

The thought made Cody frown. Had what happened to him happened to them?Had they, like Cody, suddenly woken up in this kriff-forsaken nightmare, but been unable to cope with the burden of what they had done?

Cody didn’t get the chance to find out.

“CC-2224, you have been transferred to Kamino.” The stiff faced imperial said, regarding Cody with distain. His upper lip curled in something resembling a sneer.“I heard they want to run some tests on you.”

“Sir yes sir.”Cody said, thankful that the helmet covered his expression.He didn’t want to give the officer the satisfaction of knowing that he had gotten to Cody.

His mind was racing. Was he being sent to be decommissioned?

No, if they wanted to kill him they probably would have just shot him in the head, or sent him on one of the suicide missions. Cody thought morbidly.It didn’t make sense to use precious resources to keep him alive only to kill him once he got there.

Cody’s heart dropped. The only thing he could think of was that they had somehow figured out that the mind control had stopped working.Maybe what the man had said about running tests wasn’t an exaggeration.

No, they were stupid but not  that  stupid. Someone would have at least disarmed him first if that were the case.They must need him for some other purpose then, but what that purpose was Cody didn’t have the faintest clue.

Still, when Cody reported to the transport, it didn’t look like a ship so much as a coffin.

Something deep in the pit of his stomach told him that, whatever this was, this was the end.

—

The stiffness from days trapped about a small transport combined with nerves Cody tried to clamp down as he made his was across the landing platform.He felt naked in his dress uniform, his armor all imprisoned in the bag he had slung over his shoulder.

“Commander CC-2224 reporting.”Cody said, standing at attention as one uniformed officer stared at him with unmasked distain, the other with, was that  excitement on his face?

What the kriff has Cody just walked into?

“We are excited to finally have you here.”The man, obviously the younger of the two, said.“The training division has been trying to get you transferred since...”

The older man dropped his parade decorum for a moment to elbow his companion in the side, what he probably thought was discreetly. “Shut  up  Marken.” He muttered, before turning back to Cody, suddenly a picture perfect soldier once again.

“Trooper, your room assignment is 57 wing D on level 30. Are you able to locate it, or will you need an escort?”The man’s voice was flat, as if he had better things to do than show a lowly clone around.The other man, Marken apparently, rolled his eyes at his companion but didn’t deign to speak again.

“I can get there on my own.”Cody said primly. He still knew Kamino like the back of his hand, and the more unsupervised time he could get the better.He was a little surprised that they were allowing him free reign of the place, but apparently he wasn’t brought here to be shot.

“Good.”The officer said blandly. “Go to your room and await further instruction. At 20:00 someone will collect you to brief you on your new assignment. You are dismissed.”

“Sir yes sir.” Cody saluted and made his way out of the hanger.

He hasn’t been back to Kamino in years, even before the war ended. The sprawling fortress that housed the cloning facility used to feel like home. The round white walls used to feel comforting, safe; now they just felt like a coffin.

It was never about the place, it was about the people.

Kamino was home because his  brothers were there. Now instead of row upon row of familiar faces, Cody passed strangers that so obviously didn’t belong. Even in that horrible, unpainted, armor, it was obvious that some were too tall, others too short, others just a little too broad or too skinny to fit within the standards of “normal” for a clone trooper.

Whereas, initially, Cody had wanted to take his time drinking in the sights of  home,  the sheer wrongness of what it had become had Cody hurrying to his new bunk.While he had never been to that particular location before, he still knew these halls like the back of his hand and before long was standing before a steel door that looked like every other.

Cody opened the door and was shocked to see an actual room, not just sleeping pods. What was going on here?

“Welcome home roomie.” A wry voice greeted from a shaded bunk the moment that Cody walked in the door.

Cody felt his body immediately freeze. Was he hallucinating? Had he finally gone mad?

He knew that voice.

To all but a few natural borns, it would be indistinguishable from the hundreds of thousands of others just like it, but to Cody...

“Waxer?”Cody’s voice cracked just a little bit but he couldn’t bring himself to be embarrassed.In that moment, Cody felt more free than he had since he woke up to find that his world had become a nightmare. He didn’t care what state the other man was in, if Waxer was still under the influence of that mind control. He hadn’t seen a brother face to face in at least a year, a brother he  knew  in far longer. All that mattered in that specific moment was that Cody was with his vod again.

If Cody could be freed, he was sure others could be as well.He was with his brother, not just a brother but one of his closest friends, and he could figure things out from there.

“The one and only.”

Light washed over the other man’s face and Cody felt as if a weight was lifted off his shoulders as his eyes took in the sight of a familiar face staring back at him, a sight that Cody hadn’t seen in far too long. Waxer looked just the way Cody remembered, bald head, wry grin, and a sprinkle of humor in his eyes that never faded, no matter what the war had thrown at them.He had a few extra lines arounf his eyes, but didn’t they all these days?

Waxer stepped forward and Cody felt his body moving on its own accord as he fell into his vod’s embrace.

“It’s good to see you.”Waxer murmured, and Cody felt his eyes scrunch shut as he pulled his brother as close as he could.“I’m sorry for this.”

Cody didn’t even have time to question what Waxer meant before the world went dark.


	2. Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I am beyond thrilled with the reception this has gotten! I am so glad you guys like it, and every comment has made my day! I kept writing and re-writing things so this update took a bit longer than I expected, but if my work schedule allows it I’m going to try to update at least every other week.
> 
> This is unbeta-ed, so all mistakes are unfortunately my own.

For the second time in way too short a time frame, Cody blinked awake to the bright lights and a blinding headache.

He went to sit up, but there were straps across his chest stopping him. When he went to move his legs, he found that they were similarly bound.

Cody tried to clamp down on the panic that began to rise within him. He was in a tough situation, but he’d been in though spots before. This wasn’t over until he was dead. He still had his armor on, maybe he could reach one of his knives, maybe he could...

“Waxer, he’s awake.” A voice called out and Cody turned his head, the only part of his body that he could currently move, to see a young clone looking at him with wonder on his face. “He looks okay.”

Cody could see Waxer walk out of a door that was probably the refresher.

“What the kriff?” Cody glared at his supposed friend with his patented Commander expression, known to send shinies running to clean the sonics even if they hadn’t done anything wrong. The younger clone, kid had to be eight at the very most, shrunk back and Cody had to tamp back the feeling of victory that went through him. The young Imperials never seemed to realize just how close they were to being thrown on the worst duty rotations Cody could find.

Waxer actually looked a bit remorseful, which was a completely bizarre expression to see on the typically brazen clone’s face. Cody was expecting aggression or the start of an interrogation, not whatever this was. “I’m sorry, we had to take precautions.” He said, and his face grew distant for a moment. “After I got decked in the face one too many times, we couldn’t take that chance. You can let him up Glitch.”

The young clone, Glitch apparently, began to loosen the straps holding Cody down. Cody had to fight the impulse to brace against the restraints. He wasn’t sure what was going on but he didn’t think that they intended to hurt him, or at least not yet. He rubbed at his wrists as he sat up, glaring at Waxer. “You never answered my question. What the ever loving kriff was that?”

“I had to be sure you were safe.” Waxer said, suddenly looking a whole lot less sheepish. “Your chip was broken, but I’d already guessed that from the fact that you actually recognized me.”

“Chip?” Cody looked over at Waxer in confusion. “What do you mean, chip?”

The other clone looked bitter and mournful all at once. “Yeah, so, funny thing. You know those so called aggression inhibitors?”

Cody nodded, but a feeling of dread pooled in his stomach. He had heard the rumors that had started to swirl after two clones from the 501st went rouge, but the war had been in full force. Cody barely had time to think about anything other than the next battle much less worry about whatever gossip his men fixated on when they got a little too paranoid.

One week the men were paranoid that a rancor had taken up residence in the bowls of the Negotiator, the next, they were being mind controlled. Nothing new.

Rex had gotten drunk at one point and ranted about it, but Cody hadn’t paid it much mind. His brother had been out of his mind with grief over the death of Fives but Cody’s only concerned had been for Rex, his brother’s sanity seeming to degrade by the day.

Now though...

“Yeah, well, they weren’t just rumors.”

Cody’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?” He felt his hand shake as he gripped the edge of the bed, knuckles what. No, no it couldn’t be. The signs were all there and he had ignored them, over and over again.

Waxer raised his eyebrow. “Well sir, I don’t know how else to explain to you that you have a kriffing mind control chip in your head. We couldn’t take it out and risk alerting the Kaminoins, but we did make sure that yours was deactivated.”

Cody felt like a string had been cut and he slumped over head in his hands. This was all his fault. He had been the damned High Marshall Commander, it was his responsibility to take care of the men in his care and he had failed on a monumental level.

Suddenly he felt light headed. Oh, he was hyperventilating, that was nice.

This was different from the guilt that had nearly consumed him when he woke up. Then, he had done terrible things but it had all been out of his control, now though, every death was on his shoulders.

Obi-Wan...

A firm arm wrapped around his shoulders and pulled him close. Cody’s chest shook with sobs that he had been holding back for months.

Waxer didn’t say anything, just held him as all of the pent up frustration and grief and rage came pouring out.

How could he be so selfish? He was here, alive, when so many were dead, and dead at his hands.

“I’m, uh, going to go.”

Cody looked up to see Glitch edging towards the edge of the room, a small box in his hands. He wanted to feel humiliated to be seen like this by a shiny, no, not even a shiny, a cadet, but he couldn’t seem to find the energy.

“You’re good, you know what to do if you get caught.” Waxer said as Cody disentangled himself from his vod.

The younger clone gave a sharp nod and disappeared out the door.

“So, why was the kid here?” Cody said, trying to pretend that his voice wasn’t rough.

“I needed him to take a look at your chip, he’s one of our medics.”

“Your what?” Cody’s voice was incredulous. “But he’s a cadet.”

“You know how they were sending them out way too early towards the end? It’s gotten worse.” Waxer said softly, and Cody grit his teeth.

Any vod below the age of twelve should have been safe on Kamino, but they had begun sending them out at eleven, then at ten, and even a few nine year olds had gotten through. Cody, like every other clone in the GAR, has been fiercely protective of his younger brothers and it filled him with rage ever time he saw one far too young for the battle field. The thought that they were sending them out even earlier...

And yet with everything going on, Cody could barely bring himself to be angry. The whole damn universe was kriffed up and there was nothing he could do about it.

Cody took a deep breath, ignoring how it rattled around in his lungs. His pain meant nothing anymore. “Tell me more about the rebellion.”

At this point, all Cody could do was take things one step at a time. He was still breathing and so he could make a change.

“Well, I honestly don’t know much.” Waxer rolled his eyes at the incredulous look Cody shot him. “My squad and I were captured by the rebels on a mission in the outer rim.” Waxer took a deep breath and the expression on his face grew wistful. “They took out our chips and gave us a choice, we could go with them or stay and try to make a change from the inside. They were able to check their database to see if Boil had been found, but he hadn’t, and I...”.

Waxer took a deep breath and looked away. Gently, Cody put a hand on his arm. His heart broke for his friend, but he understood. War meant that difficult choices had to be made and he knew that if there was even a chance that Obi-Wan was alive, Cody would have done whatever it took to find him even if it meant remaining in the Empire’s grasp. It would be near impossible to find Boil from the outside, but with access to the Imperial databases, Waxer at least had a chance.

“I don’t know too much, I can’t with my position,” Waxer said hesitantly, after what felt like ages, “but there’s going to be a raid on Kamino. We’re going to get the shinnies out, and...” he paused, “they have the Jedi cadets here too.”

Cody froze.

“What?” He croaked out. “There’s Jedi here?”

Waxer nodded. “They moved the kids here last month. I think they’re training them to be darjetti.”

A wave of pure cold washed over Cody. He remembered the feeling of Ventress, of Dooku, the thought of corrupting children into that demagolka...

Waxer sighed. “I don’t know when it’ll happen, but it’s going to be soon. Are you with us?”

“Is that even a question?” Cody stared at his vod incredulously, but Waxer nodded solemnly.

“You have a choice. Even if you don’t want to be involved, we’ll do our best to get you out. It’s not like...” Waxer’s voice trailed off, but Cody knew what he was going to say.

It’s not like before.

Obi-Wan was fiercely protective of the 212th and treated his men as individuals, as people. He wouldn’t even dream of asking them to do anything that he would not do himself. The men in the 212th fought not because they believed in the cause, but because they believed in their general. Not every clone was so lucky.

Sometimes, often the way they were treated by the Republic as a whole, it was painfully clear that the vod were not regarded as people by a vast majority of the populace. They were decanted to fight and to most people that’s all they were good for. After the events of Umbara, where Waxer had barely escaped with his life, it was painfully obvious that they were at the mercy of a universe that didn’t see them as people.

“I’m with you until the end.” Cody said solemnly. “They took our brothers,” they took Obi-Wan, Cody didn’t say out loud, but he knew that Waxer heard loud and clear from the pitying expression on his face, “they need to pay.”

Waxer nodded, a grim smile on his face. “That’s what I thought you’d say.” He gripped Cody’s wrist right in the Mandalorian way that all of the clones had adopted. “Welcome to the rebellion.”

—

Cody’s head was still reeling when he eventually made his way down to the training room. He wished that he has his helmet to hide his expression, although he knew that anyone other than the vod wouldn’t be able to get a read on his mood through his carefully blank face.

In reality, very little had changed, but Cody’s entire perception of it had been thrown upside down.

The chips, the fact that some of his brothers were still alive, the fact that the Jedi still existed. Nothing would ever be able to erase the bone jarring feeling of the cannon going off, the sound of his body hitting the water, but helping to save the younglings would go a long way towards righting Cody’s many wrongs.

Lost in thought, Cody barely noticed that he had reached the training center.

Cody took a moment to center himself. He hadn’t been Cody in so long, after being around someone that he completely and wholeheartedly trusted for even just a few hours, it was easy to forget that he was in the bed of the enemy.

He had to put up the mask of CC-2224, loyal Imperial commander. After Cody’s little taste of freedom it almost hurt to put up his shields again, but at least now he had a purpose.

“Commander, welcome!” A familiar voice called as Cody walked through the door and Cody sighed at Marken looked over at him from the other end of a long table. The other Imperial soldiers, none in armor Cody noted, looked less than impressed. It was funny, the man always acted like Cody had a choice to be here. “This is Admiral Pensi. He’s in charge of the training program.”

“A pleasure to meet you, sir.” Cody stood at parade attention as the new man surveyed him with a calculating look.

“At ease soldier. We are excited to have you onboard.”

The mad nodded, and clearly dismissed, Cody kept his walk steady as he made his way over to Marken who gestured to the chair next to him.

A few hours before, a packet of information had been sent to Cody’s data pad, finally giving him more information as to why he had been recalled to Kamino. He would be a part of the training program of the Imperial version of ARC troopers, but why exactly he had been chosen for the job he had no idea. Apparently, when the rebellion had located Cody, he had already been slated for a transfer to Kamino. The only thing Waxer had done was manipulate the system so that they were bunking together.

“CC-2224,” The Admiral said, waving his arms grandiosely when Cody eventually got to the front and sat down, “is one of the few remaining beings in this universe who have give toe to toe with force users, but CC-2224 not only survived a multitude of encounters, but came out victorious in the end.” His smile took on a vicious edge and Cody’s stomach dropped when he realized that Pensi was talking about Obi-Wan. “As Lady Parus can not oversee our training on a regular basis, someone with significant experience dealings with force users is the next best thing. He is going to be our key to taking down the last of the Jedi.”

Cody had to force himself to not react to the words. The last of the Jedi? The Jedi were dead, Cody had been there, Cody had walked through the temple, still half on fire and remaking of death, there couldn’t...

“You really think that a clone is going to be able to teach something that we can’t?” One of the uniformed officers scoffed. Cody let the words slide off of him, it’s nothing that he hadn’t heard before, but he saw Marken stiffen beside him.

“Are you questioning my choice?” Marken said stiffly, but there was an edge to his words that made Cody uneasy.

“What if I am?” The pins on his uniform marked the man as a commander, which was probably the only reason that the man had gotten away with this sort of attitude thus far. Still, Cody eyed Pensi warily. The other man seemed volatile and Cody was surprised that he tolerated even this level of infighting. He didn’t seem to be a man that cut any sort of slack. Pensi said nothing though, just looked at the man with his eyebrow raised, apparently content to let his subordinates work out the spat themselves.

“If you can do better, prove it.” Marken said coolly, crossing his arms.

Cody could barely suppress his groan. It was like watching two shinies arguing about who’s ship went faster, except in this case Cody was one of the ships. Either way, in the end it didn’t kriffing matter.

“I know I can do beat a clone. We all know it. There’s a reason they’re being decommissioned, I don’t know how this one hasn’t been tossed out like the rest yet.”

Cody had to school his features to prevent the disgust he felt from showing on his face. Being talked about like he wasn’t anything more than a tool to be used and tossed away not a rare occurrence within the Empire but it still made Cody’s blood boil, not for himself but for his brothers still in service. Their lives meant something, no matter what di'kuts like this man beloved.

“I think there’s an easy way to settle this.” Marken said calmly. “Jameon, how about you spar CC-2224? It’s an easy way to prove that he is more than capable of contributing to the program.” He shrugged like he hadn’t just suggest that two senior officers beat the shit out of each other to prove who was stronger. What was even worse was that Admiral Pensi was nodding along, like he agreed with that plan of action.

Cody felt like he was stuck with a group of damn shinies having a pissing contest about who’s fighter flew faster. It was absurd.

“I’d be happy to.” Jameon grinned, his smile showing too many teeth.

This was stupid, so beyond stupid, but it’s not like Cody had any other choice.

—

The training room that they relocated to was small, but all of the training officers were able to fit even if they looked a bit cramped.

Cody shed his jacket and placed it neatly to the side, watching as Jameon did the same. The other man’s movements were fluid, but stiff, like he had had training at some point but was out of practice.

Standing this close, it was obvious that he had at least a few inches and several kilograms on Cody, but in the scheme of things, that didn’t matter much. Anyway, the perceived advantage would only serve to make Jameon more cocky or at least Cody hoped so.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the smirks and looks that the other officers were exchanging as if they already knew the outcome of the match.

Cody wasn’t cocky, or at least he tried not to be, but the fact of the matter was that most natural born humans were simply no match for a clone especially not one with extensive hand to hand training. Clones were designed to keep up with the Jedi, they were inherently faster and stronger than the average human, not to mention that they spent their entire lives fighting or training to fight. That’s not to say that a clone would win every fight every time, but a clone with Cody’s experience versus a military officer? Well, the odds were likely in Cody‘s favor.

As he squared up across from the other man, Cody couldn’t help but think of the absurdity of the situation. Here he was, a commander about to fight some officer over some childish brass’s misplaced sense of pride. The whole situation was strange. Marken seemed to have some legitimate idea of Cody’s capabilities not to mention that the men seemed to legitimately like clones. Nothing made sense and it made Cody’s head spin just thinking about it.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. He could worry about Marken later, for now he had to win this absurd fight.

There was a signal to begin and they began to circle each other.

Just by the man’s stance, Cody could tell that he had at least some formal education. His weight was low and he looked like he was waiting for Cody to make the first move, which Cody most certainly was not.

“Just get on with it!” A voice yelled from the crowd and Cody couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Years of sparing with Obi-Wan meant that he wasn’t about to be rushed into anything, Jameon on the other hand...

Cody dodged the first punch easily, stepping to the side as the other man lunged forward. He grabbed Jameon’s arm, intending to throw him to the ground, but he was able to twist out of Cody’s grasp with a surprising amount of strength.

They were back to circling each other again, but this time Cody was ready. Just that quick tussle had taught him more than enough about his opponent. Jameon was big, bigger than Cody, and was used to being able to power his way past opponents. The other man was better than most Imperials, Cody would give him that, but his strength was his weakness and he lacked the true finesse needed properly utilize it against a trained opponent.

This time, Cody was the one to make the first move, darting across the mat to deliver a fake out punch followed by a sweeping kick that sent Jameon rocking back. The other man’s eyes narrowed, looking at Cody with something akin to grudging respect.

A swirl of reluctant satisfaction welled up within Cody. In the end, it didn’t matter what any Imperial thought of Cody, but it was always entertaining to take a cocky soldier down a peg or two and it apparently didn’t matter what uniform they were in.

The rest of the fight went quickly, and being able to let out his frustrations on such a willing participant felt far better than Cody would like to admit. They exchanged blows several more times, but in the end Jameon was pinned to the mat with Cody surveying the crowd coolly. The stunned expressions of the other men was well worth the twinge that Cody suspected would be an impressive black eye come morning.

“Let him up Commander.” Pensi said dismissively, then turned back to the other officers. “And that, gentlemen, is why CC-2224 was specially selected to head the program. If you want to train the best, you must first acquire the best teachers. You are some of the best and brightest in your respective fields, but there is no comparison for practical experience.” Pensi surveyed the crowd, hands on his hips and an unpleasant smirk on his face. “Does anyone else have a problem, or are you ready to get back to work?”

—

“How was your first day?” Was the first thing that Waxer said when he walked back in through the door.

Cody grabbed one of the pillows off the berth and chucked it at him.

“That bad huh?” Waxer chuckled, and Cody stared at him blandly.

“I have a black eye.”

“I saw.” Waxer said cheerfully. “Better put some bacta on it or you’ll give poor Glitch a heart attack when you go in for your physical tomorrow.”

“Marken decides to volunteer me to fight an officer who questioned my abilities, and for some reason the Admiral decided to go along with it.” Cody groused as he let himself flop down onto the bed.

“You know, he’s Tarkin’s cousin.” Waxer said conversionaly.

“That explains so much.”

Tarkin as a Rebublic admiral had been recognized for his effective, though ruthless, tactics, but no one would have guessed just how much he had been hiding his true, bloodthirsty, nature.

Cody had only been on the flagship for a few months but he didn’t think he could forget the screams you could hear of you went down to the wrong part of the ship.

If Admiral Pensi liked war nearly as much as Tarkin did...

Cody had to suppress a shiver. The fact that a man like that was in charge of the training program was not a good sign for Cody’s position.

“Don’t worry, I think he’s about to ship out again. He may be in charge of the program, but he doesn’t like to stay away from the front lines for long.” Waxer reassured him with his familiar wry grin. “Now get some sleep, you’re going to have a long day ahead of you tomorrow.”

Cody drifted in and out of sleep until there was a soft voice and a gentle shove to his shoulder.

“Hey, budge over.”

On reflex, Cody shifted to make room for Waxer on the bunk. “I thought you had your own berth.” Cody teased gently, but Waxer shushed him and threw an arm around Cody’s waist.

“Sleep, now.” Waxer grumbled against Cody’s back, and Cody couldn’t help the laugh that rumbled deep in his chest.

The position was so familiar it hurt.

Boil may normally be the crabby one, but Waxer could give him a run for his money when it came to sleep. After Cody had nearly passed out during a particularly long campaign (which was still better than his general, who actually had passed out on not one, not two, but three separate occasions) the two of them had taken it upon themselves to force Cody to actually get some rest, dragging him from his private cabin to the main barracks where he could sleep surrounded by people he knew and trusted.

It felt like any second now Boil or one of the other clones would to come join the sleeping pile, or Cody would sneak off to find Obi-Wan, leaving with a smirk and a knowing look from his vod.

Still, after being alone for so long, Cody had forgotten what it was like to have the comfort of one of his most trusted friends beside him and he felt his body automatically begin to relax.

Neither he nor Waxer were who the other person truly wished to see, but for now, it was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! Things are starting to get rolling now. 
> 
> One of my favorite headcannons I see around is that the clones were all touched starved and they just kinda form, like, piles of platonic cuddling so that had to sneak it’s way in there because Cody needs a damn hug. Waxer does too tbh.
> 
> I’m also so glad you guys enjoyed having Waxer make an appearance, Umbara broke my heart and he deserves nice things in at least one AU ‘verse. I’m half tempted to go back to Tumblr because I have a lot of little one shots and artwork planned for this fic that I need somewhere to put.
> 
> Well anyway, thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter!


	3. Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well I finally got around to finishing this chapter, whoops. It was absolutely massive so I had to chop it in two.
> 
> This fic isn't dead! I’m just incredibly busy with work and also marginally distractible haha. Sometimes the muses just don’t want to cooperate for months. Sometimes I write over 6k in two days. Life is about balance.
> 
> ** TW: very very brief suicidal thoughts **
> 
> Cody is depressed and sometimes his thoughts will go semi dark places, but I promise it will never be graphic! We’re almost out of the dark here folks :)
> 
> As always, all mistakes are my own.

It was scarily easy to fall into a routine.

Shinies, clone or not, were apparently the same everywhere.Just a hair too eager to please, yet overly cocky at the same time. Cody didn’t mind bringing them down a peg.

After all, it was a necessity if they wanted to survive.

The more Cody learned about his new role, the more uneasy he became. Not only was his squad meant to learn how to combat force users, they were meant to hunt force users.

That wouldn’t be an easy task, but it could be done with the right training and the right weapons.

They had beskar.Not much, not any sets of full armor, but enough to make Cody’s stomach churn.

He had been complicit in the fall of the Jedi, complicit in the rise of the Empire, and he was going to be complicit in the future subjugation of escaped Jedi.

Rationally, Cody knew that if he wasn’t here they would just have someone else filling his role, and that his presence allowed him to gain valuable intel on the Empire’s training practices and future combat capabilities, but he still couldn’t get the bad taste out of his mouth.He was not an impatient man, but now that he had a taste of freedom he was itching for something more than furtive transmissions to Rebel command.

The time that he spent on an active battlefield after his chip got deactivated was minimal, which Cody was grateful for. One less thing he had to atone for. The mere presence of the an Imperial star fighter was often enough to squash any uprising, and even what it wasn’t, most minor skirmishes weren’t enough to warrant Cody’s presence.Tactical meetings were the same everywhere, and up in space it had been easy enough to clamp down the hurt and just try to make it through the day.

Kamino, however, was a different story.

The tip of the wooden staff rested at the hollow of the woman’s throat. Cody looked down at her impassively. “You would have been dead seven times over.Get up.”

Her lip curled but she didn’t talk back as she pushed herself to her feet.

Some had, at the beginning. Cody had put a stop to that right quick.

The rest of the troopers looked on, and Cody could see a mix of frustration and distain on their faces. Many could not get over the fact that they were being instructed by a clone and Cody wiping the floor with them only served to make matters worse.

“You will not beat a force user in hand to hand combat, not unless they are untrained or severely injured.”Cody could see the frustration on their faces, but they needed to hear the truth. Maybe one day they would be capable of holding their own, but that would come after a lifetime of training that that Empire was either unwilling or unable to provide. Training that Cody hoped beyond hope they would never be able to achieve.“But as a group, you have a chance.”The words felt vile in his mouth.

Cody tried to let the numbness take over. The only way, the only way, he could justify what he was doing now was the hope that Kamino would be razed to the ground when the rebels arrived.

Maybe he would even go down with it.

“Now,” he began again, forcibly neutral in his tone and posture, “let’s go through your forms again.”

As the trainees began to get in position, the door slid open and they all suddenly snapped to attention. Cody turned to see Marken walking towards them, a wide grin on his face. Cody had no idea how the damn officer ended up as second in command of a program like this, it had to be nepotism. Admittedly he was well versed in tactical theory, but man acted more like a cadet than a commander.

“At ease.”Marken said dismissively and Cody’s class relaxed, although the majority remained at parade rest. Cody, despite his lack of connection to the force, could practically feel the unease radiating off of them.

Something was different and Marken wasn’t all that good at hiding it.

Marken seemed harmless, but Cody knew better. Sure there was nepotism and politically based promotions within the ranks, but one didn’t get to Marken’s position without having proved themselves in some way, shape, or form.Cody had no intention of underestimating any of the Imperials, not the way they underestimated him.He was in the belly of the beast and he couldn’t let him get complacent.

“I have exciting news.”Marken was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet. “Lady Parus has arrived to assess your training.I know you’re still learning, but it is important to test your progress against an actual force user. We will...”

The door hissed open and Marken immediately tightened into parade rest.

It felt like an eternity passed between one moment and the next. A black figure strode into the room, looking for all intents and purposes like she owned the place.

Cody couldn’t breathe.He tried to clamp down the panic that he could feel rising in his chest.Every time he had seen the Sith in the past, he had had some sort of warning.

He had days, sometimes every ten day, to meditate and repair his shields.

Now, he felt unbelievably exposed.

Her head turned and the mask, black and lifeless unlike the colorful expression of his brothers, surveyed the room.

“Lady Parus.”Marken said, with forced cheer.Cody could practically feel the unease radiating off him, but it was nothing compared to the almost tangible fear radiating off the students. “I thought you were taking a tour of the facilities.”

“I’ve been here more than enough, I know my way around.”Her voice was cool and crisp through to modulator.

Don’t think, don’t feel. Cody forced his breaths to be smooth and regular.

Luckily a little bit of fear would be natural in a situation like this, otherwise Cody would be well and truly kriffed.

“Well, it is a pleasure to have you in attendance today.”Marken’s forced cheer was almost worse than if he had been visibly afraid. The change from how he had been only moments before Parus walked in the room was startling.

Then, Marken had been in his element. He had been in control of the situation and under the assumption that he still had time to prepare. Now though, he was forcibly reminded that she was not under his command.

Force users acted on their own intuition and by their own rules.The theory behind working with one was nothing like the actual reality. You either found balance or you drowned.

Cody and the other clone commanders had found a careful balance with their own generals. They operated on a fine like of mutual respect and the understanding that they had different specialties and capabilities.

Marken had none of that. He looked like he was on the edge of drowning.

Cody couldn’t bring himself to care.

“I am intrigued to see your progress.”Parus continued. “I have been told that you are the best of the best, but I will be the judge of that.”She stopped her pacing and clasped her hands behind her back.“I am here to administer a series of tests to ensure that you are capable of keeping up with our Inquisitors as well as working independently to track and apprehend less capable force users. The emperor is coming for his annual assessment.”

Cody could barely hear over the thrumming in his ears.He had never been this close to her before, never had this level of scrutiny directed at him.

In, out, in, out.His chest rose and fell with the chanting in his head.

This couldn’t be happening, he couldn’t... The Rebellion couldn’t...

Parus seemed unaware of Cody’s inner torment, thank the stars. “You have one ten day to prove that you are not a disappointment to your instructors and the Empire.”

With that, she turned and strode from the training room.

It was so quiet, Cody could hear each individual breath.The time between the door sliding shut and the first sign of life felt like an eternity, even though Cody knew that it was probably only seconds.

“Kriff.”Marken mumbled under his breath then startled like he hadn’t meant for that to come out. He straightened and surveyed the class, face blank.“Return to your quarters and wait for further instruction.”

Cody made to follow his students out towards freedom, but Marken’s hand caught his arm.

Cody had to suppress a flinch.

The moment Lady Parus exited the room, his paltry shields had crumbled like a stack of cards.

“Stay a moment.”Marken’s voice was softer than the one he had used to speak to the students, almost kind.

It wasn’t long before the training room was empty. It felt stifling, no one wanted to stay longer than to they needed to to put away their training implements. Cody couldn’t blame them.

Marken let out a sigh and looked at Cody, uncharacteristic vulnerability on his face.“Do you believe that they will meet their standards?”He didn’t have to clarify which they he was talking about.Marken took a breath and spoke again. “Permission to speak freely, I need to know your true thoughts.

Cody opened his mouth, then shut it again. He wasn’t sure what to say.“I think,” he said carefully, “that some of them have a chance.”

“But not all of them.”Marken filled in what Cody had left unspoken.

“In a few years time, with additional training and the right tools, I can see maybe a quarter of them being even somewhat useful in combat against a force user. Maybe half from this particular class.”Cody was uncharacteristically short.“The rest would get slaughtered.”

Marken’s eyebrows rose. “That few?”

Cody took a deep breath.“Have you ever seen a force user in combat?”

“I’ve seen holovids.”

“Holovids mean nothing.” Cody said bluntly. “Their speed and strength is nothing like you have ever seen before. I was trained for this my entire life, and I was wholly unprepared for the actual reality of it. The only reason I survived is because I was trained directly by the Jedi.”

Memories played at the corners of Cody’s consciousness. Obi Wan’s strong arms pinning him to the mats, the scrapes and sore muscles chased away with laughter and gentle hands.

Thinking of Obi-Wan hurt like it always did, like a bruise that wouldn’t heal. Cody wanted to forget, but this was his penance.He caused this, now he had to live with the consequences.

“But you’ve been able to teach them some of your strategies, your techniques.”Marken said, almost desperately.Cody almost felt bad for him. He was well aware of the limitations his students would have, but to Marken it must seem like he had been given a neigh impossible task.

Yes Cody had learned, but though kindness and compassion, not whatever hell Lady Parus was about to subject the trainees to.

“They don’t seem to be absorbing all of their lessons.”Cody said dryly.“They’re still cocky, they still think that they’d be able to take on someone alone. Facing Lady Parus will be a reality check for many of them. They’ll either understand the reality of their situation and learn to work within their limitations, or,” Cody shrugged, “they’ll die.Lady Parus knows that, that’s why she’s here.”

Marken took in a deep shuddering breath. The color in his face that had begun to return once Lady Parus made her exit was once again receding. “Will the Emperor be pleased?”His voice was small.

Cody shrugged. “I can’t answer that.”

There was silence for a moment, then Marken straightened. “Thank you Commander.”He clapped Cody on the shoulder with that damned false smile. “You have given me a lot to think about.Take a break, I’ll be in touch with you soon.”

With that, he turned and walked from the room, leaving Cody as alone as he felt.

He was on autopilot as he made his way through the familiar halls.

Obi-Wan always said to expect the unexpected. Cody couldn’t help the dry, almost hysterical chuckle that welled up in his chest, thankful that this particular hall was empty.

The walk back to his quarters felt like an eternity, but finally he made it back to blessed safety.

“He’s coming.”Cody mumbled, the words spilling out the second the door closed, before he had the chance to fully gather his thoughts.

“Who’s coming?”Waxer sat straight up and Cody could read the lines of alarm present in his body.

Cody took a deep breath, forcing his voice to be steady. He could panic later, after he got the message out. “The Emperor is coming.” He practically spat, his voice coming out shaky and unsure, despite his attempts to steady it.

If this had been back during the war, in front of anyone else, Cody would have been embarrassed. He was a commander, he wasn’t supposed to show fear, but this was Waxer. Waxer had seen him at his highest highs and also held him at his lowest lows.

Cody could afford to be vulnerable, if only for a second. After all, his emotions were the only thing he had left that were truly his own.

Waxer froze. “What do you mean,” his voice was an eerie calm that Cody knew from experience meant he was only seconds away from breaking, “the Emperor is coming?”

In all of their talks, in all of their contingency plans, this hadn’t even been considered. Oh there were plenty of talk about what to do if Lady Parus showed up, or if one of them died, or if they lost contact with the rebel fleet, or if the children were being moved, but there wasn’t a single report of the Emperor leaving Coruscant. He always sent Lady Parus to do his dirty work, or at least he had until now.

“I mean the kriffing Emperor is coming to evaluate the on-base training programs in a kriffing ten day and Lady Parus is already here.”Cody took in a deep breath. “We need to move up the extraction. We can’t wait any longer, we need to get the kids out. Immediately.”

Waxer sucked in a deep breath, looking far calmer than Cody knew he felt.He was always good at working under pressure, that’s why he had been Cody’s second in command. “My next scheduled check-in isn’t for another seven cycles.”

“And by then it will be too late.” Cody filled in the rest.“Is there any other way to get something out?”

Cody handled strategy, Waxer handled communications. His position meant that he had far more contact with the other freed vode and it was easier for him to coordinate the regular check ins, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

“There is a terminal in the east wing that transmits weather data every five minutes.”Waxer said slowly. “It’s supposed to only be for a last resort, but it’s monitored by the rebellion. If we send out a data burst...”

“If we disguise it right there’s a chance it could get through unnoticed.”Cody filled it.

Right now they were playing a game of chance. There was a real possibility that the Empire could pick up on their transmission, or that the Rebellion wouldn’t be able to crack the code, but they had no other choice.

The Emperor was coming. There was a very real chance that the stolen padawns would be removed from Kamino. There was a very real chance that they wouldn’t all be alive by the end of his visit, a morbid but realistic voice spoke in the back of Cody’s head.

“Okay, give me the message.”Cody said, voice far calmer than his racing heart.“I’ll do it.”

“What?”Waxer exclaimed, jumping to his feet.“But...”

“I’m a Commander, and I’m new here compared to you.”Cody said firmly.“If they catch me poking around, I can just say I’m trying to find a spare training room.It’ll be easier for me to explain away.”

That last part was a blatant lie. A clone snooping around the bowels of Kamino would never be a good thing, even in the days before the Empire. Cody knew it, Waxer knew it.But at this point, it was a question of who was more expendable.

They could argue semantics about rank and experience and use as an asset all they wanted, but the end of the day there was a chance, no matter how slim, that Waxer had someone waiting for him.Cody had shot down any chance of that back on Utapau.

Waxer opened his mouth to speak, but Cody put his hand on his shoulder.

“We need you to coordinate with the rest of the vode.They know you better, they trust you.If something happens, they need you to get them out.” He said firmly.“Let me do this.”

“Okay.”Waxer didn’t look happy about it, but after years of obeying orders he fell in line.

On the surface it made sense, Cody rarely saw the other clones thanks to their differing schedules and his own responsibilities whereas Waxer had been their connection to the Rebellion for ages.In reality, Cody was a commanding officer and a brother. If a crisis hit, the vode of Kamino would follow him, no questions asked.

They sat in silence as Waxer’s data pad churned their message into code.

It all came down to this, Waxer needed to make it to freedom, Cody didn’t and Cody was thankful beyond belief that Waxer knew him well enough not to ask.

—

Getting to the room was easy enough. Cody slipped out between shift changes and wound his way through the halls, looking for all intents and purposes like a man without a mission.

It was late, he couldn’t sleep, that was reason enough to go wandering.Folks did it all the time, and Cody, clone he may be, was not immune to the side effects of war.If his path took him exactly to where the patrols weren’t, so be it.

He stopped in the med bay to have a quick chat with Glitch. It was amusing how the young clone’s eyes still widened in near hero-worship every time he saw Cody. The kid had never seen battle, never even made it off this force-forsaken planet and he always listened with amazement if Cody wanted to talk and talk about far away planets and better times.

Cody snorted. Waxer always did have a tendency to pick up strays. It was nice to know that some things never changed.

He meandered past the weaponry, pausing to inspect the beskar staffs that had just arrived. Most of the equipment the new Empire provided was complete and utter bantha shit, but Cody couldn’t help but admire the workmanship.

The staff was cool and heavy in his hand.A good weight. Not enough to be burdensome but enough to land a solid blow.

Also, a little voice in the back of Cody’s mind nagged, enough to stop a lightsaber.

They would be wasted on these Empire goons. It would take years before even the best of them could do more than hack and slash.If Marken was smarter, he would have invested in more range weaponry or beskar armor instead of shiny toys.

After ages of stopping and chatting and reversing and wandering, Cody finally, finally, made his way to the weather station.

It was nothing more than a glorified storage closet. In fact, it looked like someone had stuffed the equipment into a room that still contained spare blacks and toiletries.When Waxer said that no one paid attention to this place, he really wasn’t exaggerating.

Cody plugged in the data stick. It would send out a series of data bursts, disguised as weather reports and system errors, that could be decoded by the Rebellion. That was, if they noticed it at all.

When the download was complete, Cody looked down at the screen, staring at the lines of data. He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting, but this felt anticlimactic.

He snagged another toiletry kit on the way out.

If experience had taught him anything, it was that it never hurt to have a spare.

Sharp footsteps echoed in the hallway and Cody felt himself freeze. That wasn’t the sound of a brother, or an officer, or even a nat-born trooper.That could only mean...

“Commander.”Lady Parus’ voice was smooth as she approached. “What brings you down here this time of night?”

Cody forced his mind blank and his breathing steady.There really wasn’t anything important out this way. Just a few rarely-used training rooms and long forgotten store rooms. Nothing suspicious.

“I needed more razors.”Cody said, throwing all of his conviction behind the words. He really did, he was about to run out.

“Getting them yourself instead of sending in a request?”Parus seemed caught between bored and skeptical.The mask was unnerving. Cody couldn’t read it the way he could a brother or even an Imperial trooper.

Cody took a deep breath.

_“Hide the lie within a truth.”Obi-Wan had said as they sat cross legged, facing each other on the hard ship cot.“It makes your thoughts harder to sense, even behind a solid shield.”_

_“I hate your beard.”Cody deadpanned and Obi-Wan laughed, bright and carefree as he reached over to clasp Cody’s hand._

_“You only hate it like this.”Obi-Wan teased, a flush visible through the patches of hair that had yet to fully cover his skin._

_Cody couldn’t help the laughter that came out. “You’re right.” He grinned. “You look worse than a shiny.”_

_“Well,” Obi-Wan said haughtily, voice a direct contrast to the smile playing at the corners of his eyes, “I will deign to avoid droids with flamethrowers in the future.”_

“You know how it is, it’s better to grab it yourself and mark the logs later if you dont want to wait a ten day.”Cody kept his voice light despite the pounding in his ears.He shook his head. “We can get all the ammo we want but heaven forbid someone remembers to re-stock the shampoo.” Just as he was taught, he let the truth layer his words and fill his consciousness.

It wasn’t a lie, the Empire’s supply chain coordination was even worse than the Republic’s, and that was saying something.

Lady Parus regarded him for a second. She seemed appeased, or at least she wasn’t cutting him down for being a traitor to the Empire.

Cody kept his parade rest.

He wasn’t here to cause trouble. He just wanted to get his toiletries and to get back to bed.

“I don’t suppose you remember me.”Lady Parus’ voice was low, and Cody may have imagined it but she seemed almost sad. “CC-2224.Cody, was it?”

Her hand came up as if to touch his scar.Her sleeve fell back, revealing just the tiniest hint of green skin.

Cody didn’t move, didn’t breath.

He most certainly did not think about what it meant that she recognized him.

He couldn’t allow himself to panic, to give it all away, not now when he was so close.

Her hand dropped abruptly.

“No, I guess you wouldn’t know now.”

“Ma’am?”Cody wasn’t sure how he kept his voice from shaking. Kriff he wished he had his helmet. Damn the Imps for requiring he wear his greys instead of his armor.

“Nothing.”Parus’ voice was almost shaky through the modulator.“Go back to your quarters Commander.”

It was an order, not a request, and one that Cody was only too grateful for. Anything for him to get away.

Heart pounding, still almost too in shock to breathe, Cody let his feet carry him through the winding halls, stark white and nearly identical, yet all minutely unique.

“It’s done.”He said, exhaustion and utter bewilderment leaking into his tone as he looked at Waxer’s relieved face.

All that they could do now was wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now that we’re done with that lovely bit of exposition, on to the fun stuff?


	4. Rescue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh thank you for all of your comments on chapter three! You made my day.
> 
> Enjoy.

Each day that went by only increased the nervousness that Cody was barely able to keep from overwhelming him.  
  
Lady Parus began her trials, some trainees floundered, some exceeded expectations.  
  
Cody had almost expected to be arrested the next day, Lady Parus having retroactively seen through his ruse or their message having been intercepted, but nothing happened. That almost made things worse.  
  
He had no way of knowing if the Rebellion had actually heard their desperate call for help or if they even had the resources to stage a rescue on such short notice.  
  
He had taken to teaching Waxer and any other clone interested how to improve their shielding. The likelihood it would have any effect against the Emperor was laughable, but it made Cody feel like he had some semblance of control.  
  
They had a plan, a desperate, impossible plan, to smuggle the young Jedi and as many of the younger clones as they could fit in a cargo ship off the base. In all honesty, it had next to no chance of working, but Cody couldn’t see any other option. If they didn’t have some sort of contact with the Rebellion soon, Cody wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he didn’t go down fighting.  
  
“ST-675, TC-8891.” Cody sheathed his staff and gestured at the two troopers that had been snickering over in the corner. “Your turn.”  
  
The troopers suddenly straightened. “Yes, you.” Cody glared. “Better now than flayed later by Lady Parus. You need to prove that you are at least semi competent at hand to hand against a lightsaber or similar blade, and you need to practice with beskar. It is far different than the wood you have been training with. I have been showing you mercy. She won’t.”  
  
The troopers got in position, but before before Cody gave the cue to start, a boom sounded off in the distance and the entire room shook.  
  
Cody’s heart lurched. This couldn’t be...  
  
An alarm blared seconds later and a voice called over the hidden speakers. “Kamino is under attack. All troopers report to battle stations.”  
  
The Rebellion was here.  
  
They had a chance.  
  
He should know better than to get his hopes up, but somehow it felt like he had already reached freedom.  
  
Cody ran out of the training room and turned on his com. Under any other circumstances, Cody would avoid any sort of transmission at all costs, but this was different. In the complete chaos, there was almost no chance of someone listening in to the conversation of two very insignificant clones. Even if they did, the likelihood of anyone actually being able to understand what was said would be very slim.  
  
“Alpha bravo, defensive formation.” Cody hissed into his com as he rounded the corner. The vode had a plan, well, several plans, about what to do in the event the Rebellion actually showed up to save their collective shebs.  
  
Cody, like all of the other clones, had an advantage when moving through the bowls of Kamino. For all intents and purposes, they were perceived as stormtroopers. That would be dangerous when actually in contact with the Rebellion, but useful for Cody’s current purposes.  
  
There were about three hundred clones left on Kamino. Most, like Glitch, were too young and too useful for the day to day operations of the base to send out as cannon fodder. A handful of others, like Waxer and Cody himself, were there for the purpose of training the natural-born troopers and actually had experience in battle.  
  
All of them had been slowly and methodically de-chipped over the years, Waxer had made sure of it.  
  
Sure they numbered hundreds as opposed to the hundreds of thousands of stormtroopers, but one unexpected traitor could cause enough problems. Hundreds were guaranteed to cause some damage.  
  
The thought of so many young ones being thrown into battle made Cody’s heart ache. The Jedi younglings should have been safely stashed away at the temple. The cadets shouldn’t have even had their first set of armor yet. His first priority, his only priority, was to get as many out as possible and he knew that all of the older clones agreed.  
  
The youngsters wanted to fight, to bring justice, but Cody was fighting for a world where they wouldn’t have to.  
  
“What are you doing?” A stormtrooper with a red pauldron marking him as a captain growled, and Cody watched Waxer draw himself up to his full hight.  
  
“Are you blind?” Waxer snarled, every inch of the commanding officer he was. “I was instructed to bring them here. Do _you_ want to be the one to explain to Lady Parus why the trainee children were killed, or even worse, captured, by the Rebellion? Each and every one of them is worth more than all of the rest of us on this base combined. I don’t know about you, but I sure don’t.”  
  
“Oh, um...” The man stammered as Waxer pushed by. A small huddle of children followed, flanked by other clone troopers.  
  
The second the kids passed, Cody walked over to the captain. “Come on, there’s a control center just over here. We can watch the security feed. Lady Parus should be here any minute, we just need to keep the Rebels away until then.”  
  
The man took one look at the rank visible on Cody’s chest and nodded. He was clearly someone who had never seen battle except from the halls of a star destroyer. Cody could see the fear in his eyes, just looking for some concrete order or action to latch onto.  
  
He would last seconds in real battle.  
  
Well, he wasn’t going to last long enough to see battle at all.  
  
Cody pulled the trooper into a side closest, and before the man could protest, shot him in the head.  
  
He took no joy in killing, but this was life or death. There was no room for mercy.  
  
The door slid closed and Cody walked back to the room where Waxer had taken the children. It was a good defensive position. Not close enough to most major tactical targets, but near enough to one of the lesser used freight hangers to allow for easy evacuation. One of the older clone troopers were stationed outside.  
  
All over the base, there were pockets of younger troopers guarded by older vode, ready to evacuate at a moment’s notice.  
  
Cody slipped back inside. “Do we have everyone?” He asked Waxer, keeping his voice down. There was a clone furiously typing away on a computer system off to the side, no doubt trying to hack into the Rebellion’s communication system. The children, a mix of all ages and species, were huddled in a corner, staring at them all with wide eyes.  
  
Waxer looked down at his data pad.  
  
A medic, one of the few clones that had had any sort of regular contact with the younglings, was talking to them in a soothing voice. “We’re going to get you out of here.” Cody could here him saying softly. “We’re here to take you home.”  
  
It wasn’t helping much. Cody could see the lines of fear and grudging trust written plain and clear in the children’s expressions. It would take a long time before they would be able to heal from the trauma they had endured.  
  
“We’re missing four.” Waxer said eventually.  
  
“Kriff.” Glitch cursed from beside him, and the other medic shot the young clone a scathing glare.  
  
 _“Not in front of the children.”_ His face seemed to say.  
  
“They’re in the med bay in the left wing, in certain of it.” Glitch’s voice was uneven, probably from the nerves. “T-shi had to stay for observation and the others wouldn’t leave her side. They had minor injuries so we didn’t try to fight it. I thought they had been moved back to their normal quarters, but apparently not.”  
  
Cody sucked in a breath. Okay. The left wing was on the opposite side of the base. They had to get there, and get back with four injured children without being noticed. No big deal.  
  
“Glitch, Trigger, you’re with me.” Cody snapped. “Glitch, are you absolutely sure you know where you’re going.” He hated the thought of putting such pressure on the young trooper, but he had no other choice. Besides, they might need a medic if the injuries were worse than expected.  
  
“Sir yes sir.” Both clones snapped to attention, fear the fear evident in their faces overridden by pure determination. Like Cody, these were men with nothing left to lose, they would do whatever needed to be done.  
  
“Don’t wait for me.” Cody said to Waxer as he passed, clasping his shoulder. “Get them out.”  
  
Waxer inclined his head. “K'oyacyi.”  
  
Stay alive.  
  
“K'oyacyi vod.” Cody echoed.  
  
He and Waxer had made it through hell, they were too close to freedom to let it slip through their fingers now.  
  
The explosions and blaster fire were a steady roar off in the distance, but they were far from where Cody needed to go, and Cody hoped it stayed like that. The last thing he wanted was to shoot or be shot by someone that was actually on his side. The occasional stormtrooper they passed completely ignored their presence as Cody’s small group raced through the halls.  
  
“We’re here.” Glitch said, as they reached a nondescript door that looked like every other on Kamino.  
  
There were four children sitting or laying on medical births and a lone man, natural born and looking at Cody with distrust in his every movement. “State your designation, rank, and purpose.” He snarled, and turned a gun on the child before him. “Or the freak gets it.”  
  
Before Cody even had a chance to raise his gun, a decent sized piece of medical equipment came flying through the air, smashing into the man from behind.  
  
A Mon Calimari girl looked up at Cody, hands splayed in front of her, completely frozen. “Shhh.” Cody soothed frantically as she looked up at him with what was almost certainly distrust. “What’s your name?”  
  
“T-shi.” She whispered, looking up with wide eyes.  
  
“Okay T-shi, we’re here to get you and your friends out.” He projected his sincerity as much as he could. He knew very little about how the force worked and even less about how much these children knew, but he had to try. That was the least he could do. “Can you let Glitch take a look at you? You know him, right?”  
  
She looked over at the young clone who was hovering over Cody’s shoulder and some color seemed to return to her faded orange skin. Cody wasn’t quite sure if that was a good thing.  
  
“Great.” Cody faked his brightest smile.  
  
Force, he had no idea how to deal with kids. Why exactly did Waxer and Boil enjoy it so much?  
  
“Take a look at them and get them ready to move out.” Cody said softly to Glitch and Trigger. “I’m going to keep watch.”  
  
He didn’t wait for a response before he slipped out the door.  
  
Cody tried not to get his hopes up, but they were so so close. By the time they got back to Waxer, Fidget surely would have been able to contact the Rebellion. They could get everyone out, they could...  
  
Familiar footsteps echoed through the hall and Cody’s blood froze.  
  
Of all the people who could have come across them...  
  
Parus stepped into view, and this time Cody knew that he had no chance of talking his way out of it.

“I’m afraid I can’t let you through.” Cody forced his voice steady.  
  
He couldn’t defeat her, not on his own. But he could delay her, he could give Glitch and Trigger precious seconds to get the children out or give the Rebels time to find them.  
  
If this was how he went out, in an attempt to save the most vulnerable from those who sealed to exploit them, then so be it. It was a far better cause than the one that most of the vode had lived and died for.  
  
“Then you will die.” Parus said plainly.  
  
Cody growled and began firing.  
  
Parus deflected every shot calmly, walking forward as if this was just a lovely stroll.  
  
Dread pooled deep in Cody’s stomach. He didn’t want to admit it, but he couldn’t deny the reality of his situation. She was playing with him.  
  
“I knew there was something wrong with you, you never felt afraid of me.” Her usually silky smooth voice had a bit of a snarl to it and it and made the hairs on the back of Cody’s neck stand up. “No one is in the presence of a Sith without fear, and no brain dead clone has that kind of shielding.”  
  
Parus kept talking. Cody kept shooting, drowning her out, but he could tell she was beginning to grow impatient.  
  
A shot grazed her arm, and that’s when Cody saw it.  
  
He knew her movements like the back of his hand. Form III. Soresu. He had seen Obi-Wan fight time and time again, he had become an expert at reading his general’s movements in order to be able to pull his shebs out of the fire.  
  
When Parus shifted her weight ever so slightly on to the right and began to bend her left knee, Cody threw his staff up, and not a moment too soon. Parus’ lightsaber hit the metal with a resounding _clang_ and Cody couldn’t help but feel satisfaction at the jagged growl that ripped from her throat.  
  
She dipped her shoulder and Cody was able to whip the staff around just in time to block an attempted jab at his right side.  
  
They had only been at it for mere seconds but Cody’s entire body _ached_. Parus wasn’t pulling her shots, not like Obi-Wan so obviously had in retrospect. He grit his teeth. He didn’t know how long he could keep this up.  
  
He blocked another swing, this time to his thigh, and almost dropped the staff as Parus ran her lightsaber along it’s length, attempting to swipe at his fingers.  
  
No wonder all of the lightsabers Cody had seen had some form of guard at their base.  
  
He was quickly fatiguing. Parus was no longer pulling her shots and Cody was an excellent soldier, but he wasn’t used to this kind of fighting. Sooner or later he would tire and make a stupid mistake, or his shields would falter and he would telegraph his next move. He knew it, Parus knew it, all he was doing was delaying the inevitable.  
  
“Barriss!” The yell from the end of the hall made Cody falter and Parus took another swipe at him before wheeling around to face her new opponent.  
  
Cody dropped to the floor as the lightsaber cut into the flesh of his arm, not able to bring his staff up in time to completely block the blow. He was no stranger to pain, but this burned like nothing he had ever felt before.  
  
“You.” Parus (Barriss? Cody could not reconcile the mass of fury before him with the quiet, eager to please padawan he had met several times over the years.) snarled as she leapt forward, Cody completely forgotten. “Showing your face at last?”  
  
“I tried to help you Barriss.” The figure at the end of the hall called. “You made your own decision.”  
  
“Tried to help me?” Parus raged. “ _You_ did this to me, this is all your fault!”  
  
Cody had to be hallucinating thanks to the pain. Through the tears clouding his eyes, he swore he saw...  
  
“Ahsoka?” He croaked.  
  
Two blazing white blades flared to life. “Come and get me.” A voice that Cody had long since only heard in memories taunted.  
  
Oh, she was big now. Gone was the awkward teenage padawan that had run after himself and Rex, asking endless questions. She had grown into herself, her movements were strong and self assured.  
  
Cody’s heart soared. His little sister in every way but blood had survived. If she made it to the Rebellion, there was hope that more of the 501st, or even Cody’s own 212th had survived as well.  
  
Ahsoka and Parus’ blades clashed and Ahsoka looked back at Cody. He could have been imagining it but he swore she gave a little nod, before sprinting off in the other direction.  
  
Parus lay chase with a roar of pure rage and Cody collapsed the moment she rounded the corner, dropping the beskar spear.  
  
What the _kriff_ had just happened?  
  
In lest time than it took to walk from the caf to his quarters, his entire world had been turned upside down.  
  
There were footsteps in the hall and Cody hauled himself to his feet, ignoring the pain that lanced through him every time he so much as twitched his left arm.  
  
Kriff. Just because Parus was gone didn’t mean the danger was over.  
  
A man in blue and silver Mandalorian armor rounded the corner, and Cody raised his gun. He had no noticeable sigil anywhere on him, and that made him a wild card. Mandalor had been a thorn in the Empire’s side, they weren’t allied with with Rebellion but they ardently refused any attempts to fold them into the Empire. Still, the Empire employed Mandalorian instructors even here on Kamino. There was no guarantee that any given Mandalorian was for the Rebellion or even on a side at all, other than lining their own pockets.  
  
Cody survived a duel with a Sith Lord, he would be kriffed if he was ended by some random in shiny armor.  
  
There was a sudden movement and the Mandalorian...  
  
Put his hands up?  
  
“Kriff, don’t shoot, don’t shoot!” The voice, Cody recognized the voice. After all, he heard it every time he himself spoke.  
  
The man, the _clone_ , reached up and pulled his helmet off.  
  
“Cody.” He breathed, and Cody’s body froze as a familiar face and a shock of closely cropped blonde hair was revealed. “Cody, it’s me.”  
  
“Rex? Kriffing hell, you’re alive?” Cody’s voice felt scratchy, he could barely make the words out. “Why in sith hells are you dressed up like a Mandalorian?”

“I could say the same for you.” Rex laughed wetly and pulled Cody into a tight hug, carefully avoiding his injured arm. The base shook with another explosion and he looked off to the right. “And we can do story time later. We need to get you and the rest of the kids out of here, I don’t know how long Barriss will be distracted.”  
  
Cody looked up at him in confusion. “How did you...”  
  
“We already got the others out. Waxer told us where to find you.” Rex’s smile was sad but genuine, “good work Cody, you did well.”  
  
There were only four jedi shinies so it was easy enough to get them out. Glitch had determined that three were banged up but still able to walk, and then there was one torguta boy who looked like he had a broken foot was carried by Glitch.  
  
Cody let Rex take the lead while he took the rear. They encountered several stormtroopers, but those were all picked off easily enough by Rex, Cody, or Trigger. Mostly though, they ran past man upon man in Mandalorian armor, who all offered a nod or quick salute as they passed.  
  
Cody had to do a double take. Was that a Wookie with a lightsaber?  
  
“We aimed for the weapons production. It made for a good distraction.” Rex grinned. “Congratulations, you and your men warranted the first real attack by the Rebellion since the kriffing Republic fell.”  
  
Cody’s mind churned.  
  
Wait.  
  
According to the intelligence the Empire had, or at least everything Cody had ever seen, was that the Rebellion was a scattering of small cells across the galaxy that did little more than be a thorn in the Empire’s side. They attacked outposts and supply trains, they did espionage missions and small raids. They absolutely did not full-on lay siege to one of the largest bases in the Empire, _successfully_.  
  
These soldiers though, they were well trained, well armed, and well fed, a far cry from the rag-tag group that Cody had been expecting.  
  
Just what had they been hiding?  
  
Cody’s mind couldn’t stop racing, even as they were bundled onto a ship already packed to the brim with clones. Glitch and Trigger were bristling with nervous energy, but Cody could tell they were trying to be calm for the sake of the kids.  
  
The Kiffar girl who had been trembling the entire time broke into tears as she clutched at the gaps in Trigger’s armor.  
  
The young clone looked at Cody in bewilderment as he gently soothed her as best he could. Glitch fussed with the wrap on the Togruta’s foot before turning to inspect anyone within reach.  
  
Cody couldn’t help but snort. Medics were all the same, no matter how young. He grudgingly let the kid bandage his arm. Apparently getting sliced with a laser sword cauterized the wound so there was little blood, but force that hurt.  
  
The ship began to lift off and Cody looked at Rex. “Where’s Ahsoka?”  
  
Rex shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. “She’ll catch up.” The tentative smile on his face morphed into a full on grin, a look that Cody knew only meant trouble. “We’re burning this place to the ground. It’s been a long time coming.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Barriss uses Soresu canonically! I was pretty thrilled when I found out, it gave me a reason for Cody to recognize and be able to match some of the moves she uses. 
> 
> Kudos to everyone who guessed she was Lady Parus, I tried to put some hints in the first two chapters and really give it away in chapter three.
> 
> Rex’s entrance in Mando armor was actually one of the first things I ever planned about this fic, although the actual details surrounding it have changed several times over the past few months. This AU is massive, and I’m excited to eventually do some one shots with various scenes and Easter eggs that won’t actually fit in with Cody’s story.


	5. Reunion

The evacuees were hustled off the ship as soon as they landed and the ship quickly launched, Cody assumed to head right back down to the surface.  
  
A medic hurried over and immediately began fussing over the jedi shinies while Glitch looked on skeptically. Cody had to suppress a laugh. The kid was young, sure, but he really was a true medic. Cody had never met one that could fully trust someone else working on their patients.  
  
Another medic in Jedi robes soon joined them, and Cody’s heart flipped. He had seen more Jedi in the past hour than he had seen in years. There weren’t supposed to be this many left, how had they survived?  
  
Cody should have been grateful that the Empire had failed so badly, but instead it just made the dark, hurt place inside Cody’s heart rear up. If he had waited just a second longer, aimed just a little higher, maybe, just maybe...  
  
He was jolted out of his thoughts by a loud whistle.  
  
“All right troops, listen up.” A red haired clone that Cody didn’t recognize called and the young clones stiffened up, some snapping to attention. Cody snorted. It wouldn’t take long in the real world for them to lose that reverence for authority. Then again, this was the first time that most of them had seen a clone in a true commanding role. If they were constantly in awe of Cody, Waxer, and the older clones, who knew what they would be like in a true unit. “You will be escorted to the med-bay where you will be inspected for chip malfunction or any remaining side effects. From there you will be assigned temporary quarters where you will be given further instruction. This is non-optional. Understood?”  
  
“Sir yes sir.” The shinnies chorused.  
  
As the rest of the vode began to file out, Rex turned to Cody.  
  
“I need to get to the bridge.” Rex’s voice took on the tone he had developed as a cadet when he was trying to convince one on the older vode to do something. “And I need you to go with the others down to the med bay.”  
  
Cody straighten up, unable to hide his wince as his arm burned. “I’m coming with you, I can help.”  
  
“No you are not.” Rex said firmly. “Standard procedure, need to make sure everything’s all right up here.” He tapped his head. “Those chips are nasty work, and I don’t want you suddenly keeling over because it wasn’t deactivated correctly.”  
  
That was pure bantha shit. Cody had managed this long, he could manage a little bit longer and Rex should full well be aware of that.  
  
“But...” Cody began, but Rex shook his head.  
  
“You’re not going to win this Codes, even if I approved it, which I wouldn’t, you wouldn’t be allowed on the bridge until you’ve been cleared. We’ve had too many close calls in the past.”  
  
Cody wanted to argue, wanted to fight, wanted to make himself heard until he found out what kind of mess he had just been airlifted into, but the adrenaline that had carried him through the entire fight with Parus was wearing off, and he felt like all the strength had been sapped from his limbs.  
  
Rex clapped him on the back. “Get going, the sooner you get cleared the sooner you can get back in on the action.”  
  
“Fine. But you owe me a spar at some point, I think you forgot who’s supposed to be in charge.” Cody teased weakly, but his heart wasn’t in it.  
  
He suddenly felt lost, alone, somehow even more so than when he had been stuck within the Empire. There he had at least had a purpose, a plan, no matter how vague. Now he was caught up in something so much bigger, something that flipped his understanding of the Rebellion on it’s head.  
  
“I’m going to hold you to that.” Rex joked back and clapped Cody on the shoulder.  
  
Rex was almost to the end of the hanger when he stopped in his tracks.  
  
“Oh, I almost forgot. I’ll let General Kenobi know we have you once he’s back on ship. We shouldn’t be here much longer.” Rex called over his shoulder.  
  
The world stopped. Rex couldn’t mean...  
  
Obi-Wan was dead.  
  
Cody had seen him fall, had shot him down himself.  
  
Rex wasn’t cruel, Cody and his General were the worst kept secret in the GAR. Rex wouldn’t play with Cody’s heart like that.  
  
Cody’s world was narrowed to the pounding of his chest and his wildly racing thoughts. He had to be hallucinating, Rex couldn’t have just said...  
  
Cody was hearing things. It was rare, but Cody had been a soldier long enough to know that if one was sleep deprived and injured enough it wasn’t outside of the realm of possibility.  
  
A hand on his arm made Cody jump. “We need to go sir.” Glitch was looking at him with wide eyes, almost like he was scared that Cody was going to snap at him for daring to give a commanding officer something even resembling a command.  
  
He didn’t feel like Cody, High Marshal Commander of the GAR, he felt like little Kote, his world turned upside down after the first in his batch had been decommissioned.  
  
One step at a time. If this wasn’t all some sleep deprivation-induced hallucination, he would be reunited with his General soon, but if he let himself think about it too long, if he let himself hope for something that went against every truth that Cody had held onto ever since he woke up...  
  
Well, if he was good at one thing other than fighting, it was compartmentalizations. No matter what lay in store, he would make it through this.  
  
Cody nodded and let himself be herded along with the rest of the group, not able to bring himself to speak. That was beyond embarrassing, losing himself in front of a bunch of shinies like that. He was a commander, he was supposed to be someone that the young ones could look to even in the darkest times. He couldn’t crack, he couldn’t falter, but now he was so very out of his depth.  
  
A humanoid with four eyes and purple feathered plumage held a device up to his head. “You fought the compulsion, didn’t you?” They mused as they held a data pad out for Cody to look at. “See here,” they pointed at several highlighted lines crisscrossing a diagram of a brain, “the chip is deeply ingrained in your neural pathways. You fought it so it dug in deeper.”  
  
Their robes swished as they moved, and Cody could see the lightsaber at their hip.  
  
The intercom blared. “Attention, all personnel. Jumping to hyperspace in five, four, three, two, one.” Cody felt a familiar tug in his stomach as the ship leaped out of Kamino’s atmosphere.  
  
He turned back to the medic, who was looking at the diagram intently. “You chip is inactive, as suspected, but you need to see a specialist once we get back planet side. You’re fine for now, but we don’t know the long term consequences of leaving that in your brain. There has been evidence of neural degradation, and I personally don’t think the risk is worth it.”  
  
Cody nodded. It was surreal to hear this thing that had made his life and the lives of so many others hell be described in such clinical terms. The equipment pilfered by Waxer and the lot back on Kamino was enough to tell them if a chip was active or not, but it didn’t give them much more information. This, seeing out all laid out on a screen, was an entirely different story.  
  
There was a small oblong shape at the top of his right temple, not even the size of Cody’s littlest fingernail. That, that small, insignificant looking thing, was the cause of so much misery and pain. It was the reason that so many Jedi had died, the reason that so many vode had died.  
  
Cody could feel his nails digging into the palm of his head as the medic kept on talking. Every part of his body hurt, but he was restless. He needed to do something, he needed to make the Empire pay. The destruction of the base on Kamino was only the beginning.  
  
The medic unwrapped the bandage on his arm, and began applying a salve to the wound.  
  
“You will be assigned a regular medic, when we’re back planet side and...” Cody could hear the words they were saying, he knew they were important, but it didn’t really sink in.  
  
The door of the room slid open. “No visitors allowed in the med bay. If you aren’t injured or escorting someone who is, get out.” The medic snapped, not even looking towards the door.  
  
“I’m sorry, but this will have to be an exception.” A familiar voice rang out, and Cody’s head snapped up.  
  
Standing just inside the doorway, grayer, older, slightly singed but most certainly alive, was Obi-Wan.  
  
For the second time in under as many hours, Cody’s entire world stopped.  
  
Any second now he was going to wake up back on Kamino, with Waxer lecturing him to stop taking stims instead of sleeping.  
  
“Cya’re...” Cody whispered, not trusting himself to speak.  
  
Obi-Wan was immediately by his side, completely nonplussed by the withering glare the medic was giving him, and Cody felt his breath hitch as a hand was gently placed over his own. The touch was grounding. It was real, Obi-Wan was real and here with him now.  
  
Cody didn’t know how, but he couldn’t bring himself to care.  
  
“I’m here Cody. I’m here.” The voice that Cody thought he’d never hear again was soft, gentle, and it sounded like it was about to break. Cody had only heard Obi-Wan sound so broken once, in the aftermath of Umbara, and Cody never wanted to hear him sound like that again.  
  
“Well, I’m done with your examination. You have been assigned room 4510a, on deck 12.” The medic huffed, breaking the spell, and Cody was suddenly uncomfortably aware that every single pair of eyes in the med bay were trained on him and Obi-Wan. They shoved a tub of salve and a sheet of paper into Cody’s hands. “Change your bandages twice a day for the next week. If you don’t follow up with the specialist, I will come find you. You don’t want that. Now get out.”  
  
One of the clones snickered. Cody wished he knew which one. If he had still held any sort of command, they would have been assigned latrine duty in a heartbeat.  
  
“Let’s go before Que’va decides I need a full work up as well.” Obi-Wan‘s eyes twinkled.  
  
“I heard that,” the medic, apparently Que’va snapped. “Don’t think you’re getting out of your check up. Bant would be more than happy to track you down.”  
  
Obi-Wan grimaced, but held out his hand to Cody. “Shall we?” 

  
—

No matter how much of an open secret it was, Cody couldn’t exactly walk through the halls holding Obi-Wan’s hand, no matter how much he wanted to. Still, every time their shoulders brushed, Cody’s heart sang.  
  
He’s real he’s real he’s real.  
  
His entire world was narrowed to the redhead beside him. Nothing else mattered.  
  
“Sit down dear.” Obi-Wan’s voice was muffled, like Cody was hearing it through layers of cloth.  
  
Oh.  
  
His hands were trembling.  
  
Cody sat.  
  
The bed dipped.  
  
A strong arm wrapped around his shoulders.  
  
Cody broke.  
  
He let himself be tugged into Obi-Wan’s embrace as all of the pain and frustration that he had been holding back for so long came pouring out.  
  
“You were dead. I shot you. Now you’re here, alive, and I...” Cody gasped for breath. Obi-Wan’s firm embrace was the only thing keeping him grounded, the only thing that convinced Cody this was truly real.  
  
“It wasn’t your fault.” Obi-Wan said firmly. “Cody, there was nothing you could have done.”  
  
“I pulled the trigger, I could have...” Cody broke down again, and Obi-Wan just held him as he wept.  
  
Cody couldn’t understand how Obi-Wan could even stand the sight of him. One could talk blame all day long, but at the end of the day Cody was still the one who had shot him down, Cody was still the one who had caused so much pain and misery in the years after. Chip or not, there was still blood on Cody’s hands.  
  
“You can’t see it like that cya’re.” Obi-Wan’s voice was calm, soft, like he was handling something fragile. Cody supposed he was. “You were a victim, just as much as anyone else who has been crushed under the new regime. If the blame lies with anyone, put it on me.”  
  
“No.” Cody said firmly. His love always took responsibility for things out of his control, and Cody would be damned if he let the downfall of the Republic rest even slightly on Obi-Wan’s shoulders. “How could you have known? What could you have done?”  
  
“Then you agree,” Obi-Wan said, and Cody knew that he had fallen into a trap,“that the blame for this can not lie on any one individual.”  
  
Cody huffed but didn’t say anything. His heart was starting to slow, and he felt like he was able to breathe again. He was hyper aware of how he could feel the heat of Obi-Wan through his clothes, and the roughness of his beard where it brushed against Cody’s forehead.  
  
“I thought you knew I was alive.” Obi-Wan said eventually, changing course. “The Rebellion has been careful to keep the size of our operation under wraps until now, but I have done enough that I thought news of my survival would have spread.”  
  
Cody shook his head. “They must have suppressed it, somehow.” A grin played at the corner of his lips. “If word for out that the Negotiator was still alive and well, it would have been be even more difficult to get planets to fall in line.”  
  
“You know I always hated that name.” Obi-Wan huffed.  
  
Cody let out a wet laugh. “Oh I know. It’s not all that accurate either. Your negotiations tended to get rather aggressive rather fast. I’m pretty sure there was far more shooting than there was talking on a vast majority of occasions.”  
  
A startled laugh rumbled in Obi-Wan’s chest. “It’s not my fault they usually wanted to shoot me and be done with it.”  
  
“I guess you just have that kind of face.” Cody sighed and pulled back so that he could see Obi-Wan’s face. His eyes mapped all of the new lines, and the new scar that bisected the bridge of Obi-Wan’s nose, drinking in the sight of it.  
  
He had thought he would never see Obi-Wan again. Now, he was never going to let him go.  
  
Kriff he was going to kill Rex the next time he saw him. Just turning Cody’s entire world upside down then screwing off...  
  
It was going to be more fun than Cody had had in a long, long time.  
  
“I missed seeing you smile.” Obi-Wan said softly, and he lifted his hand to trace the edges of Cody’s upturned lips.  
  
Their eyes locked, and Cody couldn’t tell who leaned in first but suddenly they were kissing, and he was clutching at Obi-Wan’s robes like a lifeline.  
  
They fit together like two halves of a whole, just like they always had.  
  
Cody felt like he could breathe again.  
  
Nothing could take away the pain and horrors they both had faced, and Cody knew that at some point they would actually have to talk.  
  
No one could predict what the next dawn may bring, but for now, this was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! It happened! Finally!
> 
> Goodness I love them so much.
> 
> They can’t keep ignoring their problems forever, but just for tonight they can revel in the fact that they’re both alive to fight another day.
> 
> Again, thank you so much for all of the comments, kudos, and support you guys leave me. My usual beta isn’t into Star Wars, but please know that even if I don’t reply to every comment I am constantly in her notifications doing the virtual equivalent of jumping up and down.
> 
> Also: here is a quick sketch of that last scene 🥺 [ Link ](https://0nwards.tumblr.com/post/639888800140689408/all-right-folks-chapter-5-of-whats-done-is-done)


	6. Interlude: Obi-Wan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Readers can have a bit of Obi-Wan POV. As a treat.
> 
> As always this is un-betad and all mistakes are my own. 
> 
> This is a super short chapter, but after this we’re on to the second arc. Woo!
> 
> Enjoy!!

Obi-Wan settled onto the cushion in front of the observation pane, just like he had done so many times before.

He could not count the sleepless nights he had spent on the observation deck, sometimes meditating, sometimes just staring out at the vastness of space. There were infinite worlds, infinite ways the universe could unfold.

As days turned into months and months turned into years, as friends and allies continued to die with nothing that could be done about it, Obi-Wan held into the faintest bit of hope. He could still feel Cody in the force. Some days it was strong, a thrumming lifeline of ambition and concentration, some days it was so dull that Obi-Wan nearly convinced himself he was imagining it. Somewhere, somehow, out in the expanse, Cody was still alive, and Obi-Wan would do whatever it took to find him.

Every time a new batch of clones was liberated, Obi-Wan poured over the list of names and designations. He had found several other members of Ghost Company, but Cody’s name never scrawled across the screen.

He had dreamed of the day where he could have his cya’re back in his arms. Now that he had him, sleeping soundly back in Obi-Wan’s bunk, why did it hurt so much?

Footsteps approached and Obi-Wan could feel a faint fondnessworryjoy in the force. He couldn’t help but snort. For all his power, Anakin never had truly mastered shielding.

“Master.” Anakin settled gingerly onto the ground beside Obi-Wan.

“Padwan.” Obi-Wan teased back, although his words had lost their usual bite.

“The last of the bombers just left Kamino, the got out just as the Empire’s big guns showed up.” The exhausted pride was evident on his face.

“Have you heard from any of the evacuee ships yet?” Obi-Wan wished he had been around to see for himself, but Anakin and Rex had practically bullied him off the bridge the second his presence was no longer needed.

Anakin nodded. “They’ll be in Wasuii by the end of the ten day.”

Obi-Wan let out a breath. This was it. The war had truly begun.

The rebellion was vast but scattered. Long abandoned temples were being revived on the outer rim, supplies and armaments were amassed under the guise of bounty hunting, armies were strengthened in plain sight.

There would be no more frantic battles with skeleton crews, no more pulling out the most decrepit ships in the fleet to put on a show, no more hiding in the shadows pretending that the Jedi order was decimated.

They were prepared. They were strong. It was time to rise up and wrest back the galaxy from the hands of Sidious. 

He should feel something, but all he felt was tired.

Cody, the man he had longed for and dreamt of these past years, was sound asleep in Obi-Wan’s bed and Obi-Wan could barely bring himself to look at him. New scars lined his body, grey hairs graced his temple and wrinkles creased the edge of his eyes. He was tired and exhausted and still the most beautiful thing Obi-Wan had ever seen, yet the pain and suffering he had experienced over the years and was so obviously still tormented by was all Obi-Wan’s fault.

“Why are you here instead of still in bed?” There was a knowing look in Anakin’s eye that made Obi-Wan want to simply disappear. “I know when Padme and I...”

“Anakin, please stop. For both our sakes.”

Anakin did, looking slightly smug before his face fell. “Really though Master, are you okay?”

Obi-Wan took in a deep breath. “I can’t lose him again.” He breathed.

It wasn’t that simple, yet that still encompassed what it came down to.

War had brought them together, entwined them into a force of nature so strong that sometimes Obi-Wan didn’t know where he ended and Cody began. But at the same time, that bond forged by fire and necessity was a crutch, a cast. It had been a life line in those dark times, but Obi-Wan couldn’t help tiny voice in his brain that told him they were just a bond of convenience, that he was taking advantage of Cody’s willingness to offer comfort. Obi-Wan had grown up in the order, yes, but he had been able to grow as a person with the ability to make decisions and decide his own life path.

Cody’s life before the Clone Wars had been forged in agreements and blood. He had never had the chance to explore what it meant to be his own person, to be truly free. He could only have that without Obi-Wan in his life.

The rebellion was still war, but Cody would have options and for the first time in his life he would be truly able to decide. He could stay in the army, he could join the agricorps, become a teacher or a trainer, or became a spice freighter if that’s what he really wanted.

He deserved a chance to find himself, not be tied to Obi-Wan through a sense of misplaced guilt because he had shot Obi-Wan down on Utapu. It wasn’t Cody’s fault, none of this mess was, but Obi-Wan knew from experience that Cody wouldn’t see it like that and he would spend the next decade trying to make amends for whatever mistakes he thought he had made real or imagined.

Anakin sighed. “If you knew that he was going to die tomorrow, what would you do?”

Obi-Wan looked up, startled. “Spend as much time with him as possible?”

“Exactly. You’re the one always telling me to live in the moment. Even if you grow apart, what’s stopping you from living each moment to its fullest until then?” He cracked a wry grin. “Not that that will ever happen. You didn’t have to watch the two of you pining for ages. It was excruciating.”

Obi-Wan squawked, but couldn’t help the smile that played at the corners of his mouth. Anakin knew exactly what he was doing, and Obi-Wan couldn’t even be mad. “Hey! At least you weren’t the one living it.” 

“Al least you weren’t the one who lost a thousand credits over it.” Anakin grumbled. “I thought it might take two months for you to get your shit together, not two years!”

Obi-Wan let out a snort and they lapsed into companionable silence, the weight pressing down on him still there but now lighter.

Eventually Anakin stretched and clapped a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder. “I’m going to bed, and I think you should too.”

“I’ll consider it.” Obi-Wan teased. “Sleep well Anakin.”

Obi-Wan had every intention of continuing to brood, but what Anakin said struck a chord. When did the brash young kid who ran headfirst into everything get so wise? 

He snorted. Okay, it was more like Anakin threw darts without looking and sometimes he hit the target. Just last week he had tried to teach the twins how to finger paint and managed to cover the entire rec room in addition to a sizable amount of his troops in blue paint.

Obi-Wan got up and grimaced at the way his joints ached and creaked. He was getting too old for this.

He made his way back to his quarters and stood in the doorway.

The scene was so familiar yet so different. They had often worked odd hours and came and went as the other slept, and Obi-Wan looked on at Cody’s sleeping form. He was splayed across the bunk and with the sheets bunched up around his waist.

The scars criss crossing his back were barely visible in the dim light. Some Obi-Wan remembered, some he was not yet familiar with. There were silver flecks that Obi-Wan had not been around to watch grow in. It should have made him look distinguished, but it Marshal Commander Cody almost a different person from the Kote snoring softly into Obi-Wan’s pillow.

Obi-Wan took a step and winced as Cody’s eyes blinked open. 

“Obi, what...” Cody mumbled sleepily. “Come back, I’m cold.” He made a rather rude gesture and his arm flopped back onto the bed.

With a snort, Obi-Wan lifted the sheet, crawling back under the covers. “Maybe if you actually used your blankets...” He teased gently.

“No.” Cody grumbled. He threw an arm around Obi-Wan and pillowed his head on his chest. “Better.”

Obi-Wan couldn’t help the fond laugh that rumbled in his chest. “Sleep well Kote.”

“Nuhoy pirusti cyar’ika.”

Sleep well darling. Obi-Wan’s heart hurt, but that only made him hold Cody tighter. He didn’t know how long he would get to have this, but he would cherish every moment of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep. I love them but they’re idiots, both of them.
> 
> You didn’t think they could be back in the same place and it would all be easy now, did you? This is hurt/comfort after all ;)
> 
> I have so much back story for this AU it’s hard to slowly reveal it as Cody learns what the kriff is going on, but if y’all want to come yell at/with me I am also 0nwards on Tumblr! I don’t post too much but I lurk and I’m always down to chat.
> 
> Thanks again for reading, the fact that this fic is getting so much love makes me beyond happy. Have a fabulous morning/afternoon/evening :)


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